Cover Yourself

We are too quick to judge people based on their clothes.

By Heidi Elnora

I never dreamed in a million years that I would be writing a column for B-metro, or that anyone in their right mind would be interested enough in my life and my thoughts to read it. For those of you who are in your left mind, welcome, and thank you for taking a chance on me. I promise to only get better and more interesting in time, and I thank you for your patience up front.

My name is Heidi Elnora Standridge Baker, and I am a small-town girl from the community of Sardis, Ala., who had a dream of making it big. I am a fashion designer by trade and an entrepreneur by heart. By no means am I a writer; however, I was raised by many a storyteller and have found that I best express myself through sharing what’s on my heart and in my brain.

This past month I did a lot of traveling: Chicago, New York, New Jersey, back home to Alabama, then to Dallas, San Francisco and finally Los Angeles. When I travel, I wear the same outfit: black leggings, nude flats, black t-shirt, a grey and black sweater and my hair flat on my head. There are usually between three to five ponytail holders on my left wrist just in case I cannot deal with my hair anymore. My make-up is always very minimal, and even though my Nana always told me to wear lipstick, I sometimes don’t. In terms of accessories, I wear the same jewelry every single day of my life — my wedding ring, a watch, pearl earrings that Momma gave me, and a gold necklace that has three charms. Each charm represents something that is very important to me: my Jesus, my family and my state. I carry the same brand of purse everywhere I go and could care less if it matches my outfit because I love the label so much.

While traveling, I love to people watch. I find it so fascinating to see that most all New Yorkers wear black, while people in Dallas wear gigantic cowboy hats and super-tight jeans. I am probably as far from as fashionista as anyone could be, but I still enjoy examining people’s wardrobes.

Clothes are a funny thing. We hide behind them. We use them as an excuse for how we feel. Think about it. If you are happy you dress up and wear bright colors. When you are sad you were baggy comfy clothes. Some of us overdo it with all of the make-up and accessories, while others (like me) will just grab whatever is closest or remotely clean. Some of us could care less what people think, while others dress to impress or, as one of my favorite slogans says, “fake it to you make it.” Why do we try so hard to impress others and why do we judge people based on what they have on?

I saw two men in brown skirts while in L.A. the other day. They also wore brown capes with ropes around their waists, and both men had extremely long beards. Automatically, I thought they were monks and wondered, why brown? After Google-ing “monks wear brown,” I found my answer. Anyway, who’s to say that these men didn’t just lose a bet and have to grow long beards and wear brown dresses? Or that hidden cameras were following them around because they were on some new reality show? Just saying, it’s a possibility.

Yesterday, I met a lady from Dallas. We began to chat, and I told her what I did for a living. She immediately said, “Please don’t judge me based on my outfit.” It made me think, “Who am I to judge anyone?” Our clothes and the way that we dress say so much about who we are, yet is it fair to make assumptions about people based on their clothes? By no means am I telling you to go clean out your bank account and buy the entire Prada store, because Lord knows I am not about to do that, but do think the next time you put on your socks with holes and your pregnancy jeans (even though your child is in second grade) whether you are showing the world the best version of you.

By nature we are quick to judge people based on their clothes. I do feel that the way you dress tells a lot about who you are and how you feel, but is it truly fair to judge a book by its cover? Sometimes the best books don’t have the fanciest covers.

Posted on Tuesday, April 10th, 2012.

One Response to “Cover Yourself”

people are quick to judge a lot of things. Do you know of a few places to find quality inexpensive plus size clothing? Because most stores dont understand why overweight people like looking thinner and not fatter. Horizontal stripes on a 3x , are they crazy?????